THE EFFECT OF HOME GARDENING TOWARDS THE MENTAL WELLBEING OF MEN AND WOMEN DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

This paper focuses its attention on understanding the impact of home gardening on the mental wellbeing of Sri Lankan men and women during the COVID-19 pandemic. It also investigates whether gender affects in the effects of home gardening on the mental health of people. Primary data was used to understand the effects of home gardening on the mental wellbeing of people. The random sampling method and the questionnaire method was used to collect data from 400 respondents. The online survey method was used to collect data where Face book acted as the social media platform which was used to reach the respondents. The data was analysed using the SPSS (23.0) statistical software and descriptive statistics. The independent sample t- test was used to get the final conclusion of the study. By reviewing past literature, the present study has constructed four variables namely Reduce Depression (RD), Reduce Stress & Anxiety (RSA), Life Satisfaction (LS), and Self Esteem (SE) which can measure the mental wellbeing of an individual. The results show that home gardening helps in coping with psychological problems which can arise during the period of COVID-19. It was also found that home gardening has different effects on the psychological wellbeing of people based on the gender. Furthermore, home gardening affects in reducing depression, stress and anxiety while also improving one’s self-esteem and life satisfaction. In a managerial perspective, the results of the current study are important to policy makers and practitioners to prepare initiatives to promote home gardening in the country. As future research implications, researchers can investigate as to how home gardening can influence on the psychological wellbeing of people by using different contexts and analysis methods.